Darkest Night
by silent melody
Summary: Kalic has lived in the worst parts of Corus all his life. Now he is being swept up in an evil plot and will have to make decisions that will change Tortall permanently. that summary sucked...the actual story's better. *UPDATED CHAPTER 5* (finally...)
1. A Day's Work

Disclaimer: Uh, Corus does not belong to me, any of the characters that I mention later that are Tamora Pierce's do not belong to me. Last time I checked, Kalic and Nurmai were mine.

A/N: This is really short, I know, also the plot is not real clear. Hopefully the next chapter will be longer and also the plot will become clearer too (I still have to work out some of the minor details…). This is pretty much my first stab at an actual fic so comments on what to fix are definitely appreciated. Here goes.

Chapter One: A Day's Work

Kalic watched casually from the shadowy doorway as the people hustled by. There were merchants, walking down the street, screaming out their goods. There were children, of course, weaving in and out of the crowded bodies, no doubt acquiring a few pennies from someone's loose purse on the way. One could also see the huddled masses of rags and bones that were the beggars of this sad city; though they did not actually leave their self-appointed lookouts. Then there were the nobles. The rich, snobby nobles, with their filled purses that they strolled around so freely with. How Kalic hated them. Yet they were his source of money; he hated them like he hated Nurmai.

Nurmai was the one thing that stood in between Kalic and that wondrous, white powder. The powder, Haresfoot it was called, gave him a blissful release from all the horrors of Kalic's life in the slums of Corus. Though it was a short-lived reprieve, that was what Kalic lived for, for there was no other reason to wake up in the morning. This was how he saw it. So in return for the Haresfoot, Nurmai used Kalic to get all the money or information that he wanted. Nurmai was not a very patient man in the first place, so when he got angry his fuse was very short. That is, if Kalic did not get exactly what Nurmai wanted when he wanted it, Kalic ended up with quite a few bruises and no Haresfoot. 

As Kalic watched through half-closed eyes, he saw a perfect target come into view. A rather large man, with high boots and a ruffled silk collar. He had one of those fake mustaches that curled up on the ends as if put in a ladies hair-iron. His fingers were covered with heavy gold and silver rings, set with semi-precious stones. How he could strut around the city streets with all his finery and expect to be unmolested by the starving creatures that lived near that lived everywhere was amazing. The man was either very stupid or he had special connections; the latter was very unlikely and hardly a possibility. He not only wouldn't notice Kalic lifting several of his rings and his purse, he probably didn't know he had half of what Kalic took. 

Kalic stepped carefully out of the doorway, trailing the man slightly. His plan was laid out perfectly in his mind. First he got a little closer to the man and stuck out a foot to trip the woman next to him. She tripped and fell to her knees. As Kalic had expected, the man reached down to help her as the crowd continued to surge around him. When he was pushed next to the man, Kalic's fingers worked deftly, unhooking the purse with a small, but deadly sharp blade that he carried. Then he pressed his hand against the man's back, as if bracing himself from falling. The rich man's arm went out to balance the new weight and when he did this, Kalic surged forward with the crowd and slipped two rings of the man's little finger. 

Kalic then left at a normal pace, so not to draw attention to himself. When he had gotten a good distance away, and filched a few more coppers from someone's purse, he turned into a side alley. He walked down this alley and ended up on a less crowded street. Today's work was done so from there, he started to make his way "home."


	2. Nurmai

A/N: Hopefully this chapter makes more sense. Thanks to anyone that took the time to read the first chapter. =)

Kieta- (and anyone else who might have gotten me confused) I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make it seem like I didn't think that drugs were a big deal…(that is hardly the case) what I meant was that I didn't think it was very big in my story. Just thought I'd explain.

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Chapter Two: Nurmai

The dark, damp hallway that led into Nurmai and Kalic's living quarters was narrow and smelled of sweat and unnamed small creatures. A smile twitched at the corners of Kalic's mouth whenever he thought about all those rich nobles and what they would say about his home. It was not the best place to live but it was better than where Kalic had previously been living. At least here there was a semblance of shelter. Streets and sewers did not hold the most forgiving folk. Kalic pushed open the old, rickety door to the main room where the tiny fireplace and a roughly made table were located. Nurmai was sitting at the table and looking into an engraved box. 

Nurmai was not that old; he had to be somewhere in his mid-twenties, possibly early thirties. But if one did not see his face, you could easily mistake him for a much, much older man. For his hair was snow white, as were his eyes. The paleness of his features were sharply contrasted by Kalic's dark brown hair and black eyes. Kalic was only fifteen himself, or something around there. He didn't know what his birthday was and it didn't really matter; the passing of each year was just that passing of another year of hell. 

Nurmai snapped the box closed and turned to face Kalic as soon as he entered the room. 

"What'd you get fer me t'day?" His voice was low, and smooth but his hand rested almost nervously on the box he had been examining. 

Kalic walked over to the table, careful to move around the opposite side, away from Nurmai. "Some pretty things, but you can't have them till you give me the Haresfoot." It was something that Kalic had learned early on; never hand over the loot without having you share in your hand. Nurmai had a funny way of "forgetting" to give Kalic the powder if not prompted by the boy.

Quite suddenly, Nurmai jumped up, knocking over his chair in the process. Kalic backed away from the table as Nurmai started to come towards him. He kept backing away until his back was pressed against the wall.

"What makes you think," Nurmai growled, his fist tightly clamped on Kalic's shirtfront, "What makes you think that a little nothing like you could ever keep something from me? Don't you think that I could just use you however I pleased and not have to give you a damn thing?" When Kalic did not answer he slammed the boys head against the plaster wall behind him. 

Kalic mentally hit himself. How could he be so stupid? How idiotic was it to just walk in, make a snide comment, and expect Nurmai to let him get away with it? He refused to admit it, but still the thought lurked in the corners of Kalic's mind: maybe he was getting just a little to dependent on the Haresfoot. Nurmai leaned in closer, his nose almost hitting Kalic's. His breath reeked of things that Kalic would not care to guess. 

"Now, you will give me whatever you have, all of it. Right now or else I will beat the crap out of you then leave you for the scum and the rest of your kind to finish off." 

He tossed Kalic to the floor and gestured at the table. Kalic got to his feet and emptied the contents of his secret pockets. He had no doubt that Nurmai would not swiftly do as he had threatened. Nurmai looked over the contents: several full purses, 6 rings, and an assortment of various coins. Kalic shifted from foot to foot, not sure what Nurmai would do when he was in a mood like this one.

Nurmai scoffed, "This is crap. I can't do anything with this." He threw a handful of coins at Kalic's head. "It's worth _nothing_!" This was a gross understatement and both knew it but Kalic was not about to argue. Kalic looked down at his feet.

"I'll go out and get more…" he trailed off, not sure what Nurmai would think of this. 

"No, there's something else I want you to do," a thoughtful look came into Nurmai's eyes. "Yes, something else…"

Kalic looked at him questioningly, forgetting that he was not in a good position. 

"I have a job for you." Nurmai looked pleased with himself.

"You will go to the palace and kill someone for me."

A/N: mwhahahaha! Cliff hanger! (or at least I think it is.) please review even if you didn't like it, I'm curious to see what people think.


	3. The Job

A/N: sorry it took so long, I was caught up in October Baseball (or the end of it rather). Anyway, it's kind of short again…I keep trying to make it longer but it doesn't work.

Chapter Three: The Job

Kalic stood there, stunned. No. He wouldn't do it. He couldn't do it. _Kill_ someone? Never. Not ever!

Nurmai went on, "There is man, a very powerful man that lives in the palace. He is very dangerous and will do anything to get what he wants. Yes, you must be careful. Ever so careful." He moved back to where he had been sitting before. Though he continued standing, Nurmai's fingers traced over the box he had hidden away so quickly before. 

Finally regaining his ability to fell things, Kalic started to say something. "Nurmai, I-" Nurmai shot him a poisoned glare. Then, as if remembering something, he turned away from the table and went to fish something out of a drawer. He came back; carrying two rolled up pieces of paper. 

"Here," he unrolled one and placed the box on one corner to keep it from springing back to it's original state. "This is a map of the inside of the palace. The other one is a map of the grounds and immediate surrounding area. And there," he pointed with one long, pale finger at a tower in part of the main castle, "is where you will find this man. There is another woman that lives with him. Kill her also if she gets in the way. You will leave before dawn tomorrow. I will get you everything you need tonight…"

"Nurmai!" The older man looked up, startled almost. He had been engaged in his thoughts and was slowly tracing over the carving again. His surprise quickly changed as his eyes clouded over with fury. But Kalic was beyond the point of caring. His only thought was of how he was _not _going to kill _anyone._ No matter what Nurmai did to him.

"I won't do it! You can't make me! I don't care what you do or what you keep from me, but I'm not gonna kill someone!" 

Nurmai had heard enough. He swiftly picked up the chair he was standing next to and hurled it at Kalic. Kalic tried to duck but couldn't move fast enough. The chair's leg stuck him on his forehead. He reeled back, stumbled and fell to the ground. Things around him began to sway and darken. _Thank the gods, _he thought. But life is darkly ironic and just as he thought this, the world ceased it's spinning and brightened. Only now Nurmai stood over him again.

He stepped on the boy's wrist and watched Kalic register the pain and try to shift himself to avoid it. "Don't fight me boy. You'll never win," he spoke quietly but his words dripped with malice. "You will leave tomorrow, you will enter the palace, and you will kill this man. Or I will kill you. Slowly, ever so slowly. You will hurt very much before I am done with you. And you will wish, so desperately, that you had just simply done as you were told. Do you understand me?"

Kalic nodded slightly, not looking at Nurmai. He pressed harder. "Yes, yes I do," Kalic managed to gasp; his voice was shaking uncontrollably.

"Good." Then he turned away. "I'm going out to get a few things. You'll be here when I come back. Then I'll give you more instructions on what you're to do." He began walking towards the door. When he got there he stopped, " I wouldn't lay a finger on that box if I were you. There are ways to find out what's happened to it."

Kalic nodded again, but before Nurmai could leave he quickly asked, "What's his name?"

Nurmai looked at him strangely. "His name? Well, I suppose it won't matter…His name is Numair Salmalin." With that he exited and shut the door firmly behind him. 

A/N: I'm sorry about the names (Nurmai, Numair). At first I didn't realize it, then I thought it wouldn't matter because I was originally intending the person to be Jon. But then I changed it. If you want me to I can change Nurmai's name a little so that it isn't so confusing, just put it in your review =).


	4. Dangerous Messages

A/N: okay, so no one gets too confused: this chapter isn't really about Kalic, but it's important, plus I think you'll like it…hopefully.

And to clear up any 'when did this happen?' issues, this chapter takes place before/during the first chapter.

Also, seeing that it's **not **directly about Kalic, of course it's longer than all the other ones…of course. Hope you like it!

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Chapter 4: Dangerous Messages

Countess Lartiqua sat in her "throne," which sat on top of a dais at the end of a long room. Her pale blue skirts were spread artistically around her narrow frame. The fitted bodice was made of the same blue and was decorated with the tiniest diamonds and seed pearls. In her lap, though, was a small box; it's drab appearance only made worse by the splendor surrounding it. Lartiqua traced a graceful finger along the carvings engraved on the box, the one interesting thing about it. The carvings were said to tell a story, but it was one lost long ago. Now they were just pretty decorations that looked odd and misplaced on the otherwise plain object.

A knock sounded at the door and a dark head poked in. 

"Enter, if you will," the lady's voice was soft and light, like fresh snow that whispers when you step on it.

The head continued on into the room and bowed as he approached the chair. He was dressed as a servant and an important one too. His uniform was navy blue with light blue and gold stars stitched into the hem and around the collar. On the chest of the tunic was a small picture of a tree encircled by a ring of fire, the symbol of Lartiqua's family.

"My lady, everything is ready to go," his eyes rested on the box.

The woman nodded, "Yes, it is time." She opened the box one last time to assure that everything was in place. A map, a note, a charm, one of the finest knives ever made, and most importantly: a thin vial of swirling, opalescent liquid. The contents of the vial had two main purposes; one could contact another with the correct magic and scrying objects or it could be a deadly, undetectable poison. 

The servant moved forward and the countess snapped the lid shut and muttered something under her breath. Then she handed it to the man.

"You must be very, very careful with it. If anyone were to find it… Just keep the others from finding out what it is, let them think that you are just going on a routine journey to the capital. And if any get too nosy…" She made a motion with her hands. "I'm trusting you with everything now, all of our lives depend on this information getting to no one except Master Nurmai. You do understand." It was not a question. The lady commanded you obeyed, that was the way it worked.

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

The other four men were weary and grumpy; they had been traveling almost non-stop for nearly three days now. Veryn, the one servant that was privileged with the true reason of their journey, was not showing any signs of fatigue if he was at all affected. 

"Come on, we must reach the capital in the next day or so. The lady needs to have her reports delivered to the king." Veryn urged them on but only got mutinous grumbling in response. Another one of the messengers looked up at the sky which was quickly darkening.

"We should stop soon," he commented, visibly forcing back a yawn.

Veryn glared at him. "Since when do you get to decided when we stop, Sartiv?" His words threatened but Sartiv did not back down. 

"We are all tired, although you do not seem to be. Some witchcraft the lady has put on you most likely. We must stop soon or it will be to dark to find a place to camp or do you wish us to ride into the night, completely blind and vulnerable to anything?"

The others made sounds of approval and Veryn could see that he would not have control over this decision. 

"Fine we will set up camp at the next spot, but we will leave as soon as I say tomorrow morning." The others said nothing but that really didn't matter. 

After they had finished setting up camp and grooming the horses, Sartiv brought out some provisions and they all ate. Iman, another one of the five riders, was assigned to first watch and the other went to their sleeping rolls. Veryn always kept the box with the messages close to him. He slept with it in his saddlebag, under his head. None of the other men knew about it so far. At least that's what he thought.

In the middle of the night, someone rifling through his bag startled Veryn awake. The person had grabbed hold of what Veryn was sure was the box he had so perfectly been hiding. He fought back the urge to lash out at the person and waited to see who it was. 

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Sartiv, his mind growled, _I should have known. He's too curious, of course he found out about it._

Slowly he drew a knife out of a sheath inside his shirt. The he leapt up, covering Sartiv's mouth to keep him from alerting the others. With the other hand he pressed the cold steel to the other man's neck. Then he walked slowly away from their little circle and into the surrounding forest. 

"Shouldn't have done that," Veryn scolded, as if he was telling off a small child for having dirt on his face. "Now what exactly do you think you're doing, going through my things like that?" He took his hand away from Sartiv's mouth slightly so that he could speak.

"I know you've got somethin' in there from the lady!" he hissed. "We've all got a right to know what it is! If you think your gonna get away with it and get special treatment from her you wrong! I refuse to let you cheat us and lie to us, give me a share of the loot!"

Veryn chuckled dryly. So Sartiv thought it was as simple as that? That he was getting special treatment and extra money? Half-wit. Still, he knew too much.

"You poor idiotic creature, too bad you couldn't just mind your own business." And with that, he sliced the knife across Sartiv's neck, killing him instantly. 

Veryn proceeded to calmly cover the body with fallen branches and wiped his blade in a leafy bush. Then headed back to camp and went back to sleep.

The next morning, when Sartiv was discovered missing, the others searched around a little, but found nothing. They gave up quickly, figuring that he must have crept away in the night for some reason or another. They broke camp and headed back on the trail to Corus. 

~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Two days later Veryn stood in a dark alleyway, counting doors. Four…five…six…seven! There it was. He headed for the seventh doorway and entered into a dark, smelly hallway. Disgusting. How could these people live like this? He thought back to a boy he had passed on his way here. The kid probably live somewhere around here anyway; he had looked like he was up to no good too. Veryn shuddered, the sooner he got out of here, the better. 

Abruptly the hallway ended and there was only a small door that was hard to see because of the bad lighting. _This must be it, _the man thought, and knocked.

A young man answered the door, maybe in his mid-twenties. But he was odd for his hair had not color.

"What do you want?" he asked. Then he saw the emblem on Veryn's cloak. "Ah, so she did want to contact me. Come in."

He backed away from the small doorway and let the other man enter. Veryn followed him to a table in the center of the small room. 

"He ladyship, Countess Lartiqua requested that I deliver this to Master Nurmai."

"That would be me obviously," Nurmai snapped. "Now, what have you got there?"

Veryn handed the box somewhat reluctantly to the strange man. Nurmai opened it and quickly read the note inside. He nodded and glanced at the other items in the box. 

"Hmm…interesting." Then he looked up at Veryn. "No one else knows of this, correct?"

"Yes sir."

"Good, so it'll just be out little secret…" he reached into his loose shirt as if to scratch an itch.

Veryn nodded and ground his teeth. He did not appreciate be talked down to in this manner, but what could he do?

"Of course sir."

"No be on your way, and make sure you tell no one!"

"Yessir," Veryn agreed, bowed, then turned to go. Suddenly he felt the other man's arm wrap around his neck and a sharp point pressing against his neck. What was this?! Veryn felt rage surge up in him along with a strange feeling of helplessness.

"You were a wonderful messenger but I am terribly sorry, no one can know of this."

"You can't do this! The countess will kill you for this!" Veryn sputtered.

"Yes, yes, of course," Nurmai replied absentmindedly. Then Nurmai slit his throat.

After he finished taking care of the body, Nurmai picked up the note one more time and let it fall to the table. 

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Greetings,

Master Nurmai, I am sending this message to you for I need you to carry out a job for me at the palace. I would do it but I am afraid that I am too far away to be able to do it soon enough. I have included a list of instructions and other various tools that you will need. I trust that you will realize that no one can know of this endeavor; it would be hazardous to all of our well beings. As for the messenger that I send this with, he is a good, loyal man, but I do not believe that he will be able to keep his curiosity in check. He will no doubt have discovered the contents of this box, if not the true purpose of the mission, by the time he reaches you. He must be killed, as much as I regret to say that, but all men's tongues can be loosened, and if another were to find out about our mission…it would be sure death. My thanks to you.

Sincerely,

Countess Lartiqua of Huris's Mark 

(PS You might want to try checking his left-breast pocket.)

Nurmai swung a little charm on a fine gold chain around his index finger. He had found it in Veryn's left-breast pocket. How convenient. The he sat down to look at the contents more closely and wait for the boy to come home.

A/N: liked it? Too much extra stuff? I dunno, I liked it… please review and tell me what you thought! I'd really appreciate it. = )

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	5. Rain Dancer

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Author's Note: okay. I'm really sorry it took me so long to update this chapter. My computer is crap and doesn't work very well so it was hard to finish the chapter. Plus I haven't had a lot of time with school and all. I promise I'll try to get the next chapter up a LOT quicker. Hope you like this chapter…I had to rewrite it like six times. Tell me what you think.

Chapter 5: Rain Dance

Cold and tired and wet. That's what Kalic was. He could feel hunger gnawing away at his insides as well. He was hiding, wedged in between these two incredibly hard boulders. And of course, it was raining. This was the first time it had rained since last spring. He was out there waiting for these guards shift to be over and according to what Nurmai had told him, that should be soon. 

He had left his home around midnight; Nurmai had changed his mind about the time Kalic was to leave while he was out "getting things." He had come back empty handed and without explanation. 

__

Nurmai rushed in, dripping wet. I watched him through half-closed eyes, expecting to get couple of hours of sleep before I had to leave.

"Get up."

I sat up, startled. "Why? I don't have to go for a long while…can't I get a little sleep? I'm exhausted…"

Nurmai glared at me. "No, you're going to leave now. It's perfect."

Grumbling, I rose and walked over to Nurmai. I looked at him and asked where the "things" he had to get were. He shook his head and reached for the box that still waited on the table. He opened it.

"Here's what you will need," he explained to me about each thing. Then he said mildly, "Don't screw up."

Kalic looked up and saw the guard turning to leave his post. _Here goes,_ he thought and darted towards the open gate. He got in without anyone noticing; not that there was anyone around to notice a young boy entering the gate.

Deciding to take his time, Kalic wandered towards what looked like a large garden walk. No one would be out there right now, seeing how it was pouring so hard. He wandered in and out of small terraces with fountains, fishponds, and various statues. Tall, evergreen hedges separated each one. He was about to walk into another one when something stopped him.

There in front of Kalic was one of the strangest sights he had ever seen. A young woman was spinning and twirling across the terrace. Her damp wet hair curled around her pretty face and she seemed to have an otherworld quality. And what made the sight even stranger was the fact that she was being followed by an assortment of different animals. None of them seem to be bothered in the least bit by the rain; in fact the girl appeared to relish the wetness of everything.

She spun around again and her drenched skirt swirled out again then clung to her equally damp legs. _She must be some sort of goddess,_ Kalic wondered. She was so graceful and delicate. As he watched she laughed and clapped her hands. Kalic thought she must be talking to herself the realized that she was directing her conversation to the animals with her. His jaw hung open with amazement.

"Hey! You boy!" a strange male voice shouted.

Kalic spun around in time to see a large man charging towards him. Kalic panicked and started running strait ahead to evade the man. Not thinking, he had run right into the beautiful, dancing woman. She stumbled and he rushed to help her.

"I- I'm so sorry," he stuttered, even more struck by her beauty up close. She couldn't have been much older than him, he realized. In fact, she looked a year or two younger.

The girl looked at him curiously. "It's alright, I'm fine." Her gray-blue eyes stared at him as if she was trying to read his mind. In her eye there was a flicker of understanding and something else, possibly amusement. Kalic thought it strange.

The other man puffed into the terrace. "Has he bothered you Miss Salmalín?"

"No, no, not a bit. I told him to meet me here you see…this is my friend…" she paused, thinking.

"Kalic," the boy supplied his name, wondering what this strange girl was doing.

"Yes, Kalic here is my new tutor. We were supposed to meet, what? Half an hour ago? I just lost track of time. I'm sorry to worry you Sir Raoul." She smiled sweetly.

The man looked at Kalic skeptically. "If you say so…" Then he walked away shaking his head, thinking, _Where on earth did Daine find that one?_

The girl started to walk away after the other man left, only going in the opposite direction. 

"Hey, wait!" Kalic called and ran to catch up with her. "Thanks," he said rather dumbly. He wasn't sure why he was doing this. He should just be thankful that he hadn't been caught and moved on. But this girl, there was something about her, some mystery. He couldn't just watch her walk away.

She spun around to look at him, her face was hard. "Why are you here?" she demanded. "Why were you spying on me?" She looked hurt almost, but for what reason, Kalic could not discern. "Did my mother tell you to? Well you can go tell that I can take care of myself!" She shouted this into Kalic's face, which left him rather stunned.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to spy on you, really. And I've never met your mother. I have no idea who you are. What's you're name?"

She studied him again, those piercing gray eyes seemed to look right into him. He shifted slightly. "Eckalaria Sarasri Salmalín. People call me Ecko." She shrugged and pulled at a lock of her black hair. "Why are you here anyways? Didn't you know it was raining?"

At this Kalic laughed. Raining. Hadn't she just been out here dancing in the rain? Who was she to talk? It wasn't like he had much of a choice, but she, she had plenty of choices. If was obvious that she was well-bred and wealthy. Probably because of his exhaustion and the fact that he was soaking wet, he found this comment hilarious. Oblivious to his thoughts, Ecko went on, "Really? Why would you come out on a day like this?"

This made Kalic laugh harder. Ecko looked at him oddly, then started to laugh too. "You are really strange, you know that?" 

Kalic smiled. _You have no idea,_ he thought. _No idea._

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End file.
